Date of Award
8-2026
Degree Type
Masters Thesis
Degree Name
Master of Science (MS)
School
Biological, Environmental, and Earth Sciences
Committee Chair
Dr. Alyson Brink
Committee Chair School
Biological, Environmental, and Earth Sciences
Committee Member 2
Dr. Mark Puckett
Committee Member 2 School
Biological, Environmental, and Earth Sciences
Committee Member 3
Dr. Jeremy Deans
Committee Member 3 School
Biological, Environmental, and Earth Sciences
Abstract
Late Cretaceous deposits in northeastern Mississippi represent some of the oldest exposed units in the state. Two of these units, the fossiliferous Eutaw Formation “proper” and the Tombigbee Sand Member, outcrop in several locations across Mississippi. Vinton Bluff along the Tombigbee River in Clay County is one of these localities. Few publications exist on fauna from Vinton Bluff; most papers reference invertebrates and general vertebrate fauna (e.g., sharks). Previous assemblage material identified at this bluff includes shark and ray teeth, fish teeth and vertebrae, and a single mammal tooth. This project analyzed material previously collected from Vinton Bluff and compared it to other localities in Mississippi, Alabama, and Georgia. This was done to better understand the distribution of sharks and rays during this period of the Late Cretaceous.
The elasmobranchs identified from Vinton Bluff in this study are the orders Lamniformes, Hybodontiformes, Ptychodontiformes, Orectolobiformes, Myliobatiformes, and Rajiformes. The faunal assemblage includes various shark and batoid species such as Scapanorhynchus texanus, Cretalamna appendiculata, Cretoxyrhina mantelli, Squalicorax sp., Ischyrhiza mira, Brachyrhizodus sp., and Cantioscyllium grandis. The results of this study revealed a trend in the fossil assemblages identified within the Eutaw Formation “proper” and the Tombigbee Sand Member. Variations among the sites can be explained by differences in local environment, deposition, and sampling. Further analysis of additional material in other localities would reveal a broader picture for elasmobranch diversity comparable to data from the Western Interior Seaway.
Copyright
Sydney Kennedy, 2026
Recommended Citation
Kennedy, Sydney, "Cretaceous Elasmobranch Diversity Across the Mississippi Embayment" (2026). Master's Theses. 1213.
https://aquila.usm.edu/masters_theses/1213